


Rebuild

by lennyangel



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Feelings, Fluffy, Happy Ending, I just needed my bisexual babies to be happy together, M/M, Pacific Rim: Uprising - Freeform, Pining, Pretty much right after the end of the movie, They eat ice cream and kiss that's the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 21:53:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14246523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lennyangel/pseuds/lennyangel
Summary: After saving the world, all Jake wants is to kiss Nate and eat ice cream. He can't do the former (or so he thinks) so he does the latter.





	Rebuild

**Author's Note:**

> A short, messy little piece about Jake having feelings for Nate and trying not to have those feelings.

The crisp snow smashed against his face. It's cold dripped down the neck of his suit, making him shiver. But he laughed. He laughed because they had just saved the world. The body of the Kaiju they had slain hulked over them; it would have been an ominous figure if not for the joy in his heart. Amara's laughter sparkled in his ear. He smiled over at her. So young, yet so brave. She deserved this joy, this moment of pure bliss. Because soon the weight of it would fall. How close they came to both death and failure. The loss of Suresh, who was too young. Too young to lose his life in battle. Yet who had  given it willingly. The weight of the exhaustion of having to rebuild an already broken world.

He wished, like Gypsy Avenger catching her out of the air, he could catch the weight for Amara. Carry that burden on his shoulders so she could stay laughing in the snow. But he couldn't. And doing so would be disrespectful to the girl who had seen her family die in front of her, had decided not again, had built her own Jaeger and had piloted with him to save the world. She could carry that weight, but she wouldn't have to do it alone. None of them could do it alone, not even Jake Pentecost.  

"Hey, Jake?" Nate's voice was breathy, no doubt from his injury. The relief Jake had felt when he had heard his friend's voice over the intercom at first was immense. On par with the relief of himself not being dead. He'd already lost Mako, then Suresh. To lose Nate, someone he shared so much of himself with, would have made saving the world more bitter than bittersweet.   
"Yeah?"   
"You are not your father. But you are his son, and he would be so proud of you. And Mako. I know I am." Jake smiled. He felt warm, it began in his stomach and spread to his chest and face.    
"Thanks, man." The urge to see Nate was suddenly overwhelming. To run to him, to hug him tight, smile and laugh with him, to kiss him.

He had to stop there. He needed to reel himself. Saving the world shouldn't induce reigniting old flames. Old loves. Since coming back to the Shatterdome, he had been struggling with his feelings for Nate. There had been many lonely nights out in the abandoned cities, where he had regretted their fight. Regretted his foolish attempt to prove himself independent. To see Nate again, older, more mature, with that ruggedness grown on his already handsome face, had been a shock his lonely heart could hardly bare. They bantered like they had never been apart.He had been worried what they'd had was gone. But it seemed Nate wanted to rebuild it just as much as he did. There remained a distance he didn't like. He needed it though. Nate had Jules now and Jake accepted that. Nate deserved to be happy. Jake suddenly felt the urge to eat a lot of ice cream.

\---

Upon arriving back at the Shutterdome, Jake immediately took a shower. After reuniting with his Jaeger pilot babies, after the celebrations and mourning, after making sure everyone had been treated for injuries before finally letting someone look at him, he needed to rinse it all away.    
   
_Ilya grabbed Jakes arm, his face contorted in pain._    
_"Suresh..." He gasped out, before breaking in to tears. Jake put his arms around him,_ _squee_ _zing_ _tight and saying nothing. He needed to cry. He had felt Suresh's death, and Jake knew the toll that took on a pilot. Jake cried too, not deep and ragged like Ilya, but quietly. He needed to hold it together for his pilots, but he didn't need to be a statue. They would all miss Suresh. It never felt like the loss was worth it. It never was._    
   
The hot water ran down his body. Over the dark curves of his muscles, across the scars, new and old, and fresh bruises. The tear stains were rinsed away and his eyes felt refreshed.  

 _He wrapped his arms around Nate the moment he saw him. He couldn't help it. Nate was there, pain tinged smile on his face, alive and handsome as ever. And Nate held him back. They stayed like that for a moment, enjoying the familiar feel of each other, relishing their mutual survival. Until Nate pulled back with a muffled 'ow'._    
_"Sorry." Jake grabbed Nate's shoulders and led him to sit down. He could see the Shao Industries helicopter on_ _it_ _s_ _way to pick them up. Newt was tied up, still_ _unconscious_ _, on the ground. Nate smiled up beautifully at Jake. He smiled back. He fought the urge to smash his lips against Nate's._  

He rubbed himself languidly with his towel, then wrapped himself up in his dressing gown. It was ice cream time. He shuffled into the kitchen and opened the freezer.   
"You're going to put a ridiculous amount of toppings on that, aren't you?" He smiled.    
"I told you not to mess with my toppings, man." Nate smiled at him and made a small defeated gesture. Jake pulled out a second bowl and scooped out a hefty amount of ice cream for both of them. He ignored Nate's face as he piled up the whipped cream. Then he pulled out the sprinkles.   
"No sprinkles for me."   
"What kinda life you living if you're not gonna have sprinkles on your ice cream?" Then he put the sprinkles on anyway. They ate in silence for a bit. Nate looked tired, yet somehow still sexy in his sick bay pajamas. Jake got a little too focused on the way Nate licked his tongue over his lips after every spoonful of ice cream. Every spoonful was excessive. No one needed to lick their lips that often. Not so slowly either. The think pink line tracing maddeningly over the lips Jake fantasised about.  

  
"Why are you staring at me?" He didn't look annoyed, simply bemused. Jake blinked in surprise and was suddenly aware of the heat in his cheeks.   
"Shouldn't you be in sick bay or something?" Good recovery. Nate sighed.   
"I couldn't rest. It's all been a bit...much, you know.?" He nodded. Boy, did he know. "Besides," now Nate looked up with those gorgeous eyes of his and gave a soft, shy smile that stabbed him in the heart, "I'd much rather be here, eating ice cream, with you." Jake just about passed out. Was he dreaming? Was this real? "Even if there is a disgusting amount of toppings." Ah, yes, real. He put on a fake serious face. 

  
"I warned you, man."   
"What you gonna do about it, huh, Ranger Pentecost?"   
"Come over there and wipe that smug look off your stupid sexy face." Nate blinked at him. Shit. Dream, dream, please be a dream. He willed himself to pass out.    
"You think I'm sexy?" Nate's voice was quiet, surprised, hesitant. It made Jake ache.    
"You know I do. Always have."   
"Still? I thought I looked so tired these days."   
"Nah, rugged man. Rugged." Nate smiled.   
"I'm glad. I saw you and thought 'how can he be even more handsome? That's not fair.' It's not, you know."    
"Wait, wait, you think I'm handsome? I mean, obviously you do, but you're saying it." They both laughed. His heart was beating fast. Was he reading too much into this? It felt like that distance was gone, like the old intimacy was back. He'd moved round the table now, to stand right beside Nate. He could easily reach out his hand and cup his face. Tilt his chin. Press their lips together. Then he remembered. 

  
"How would Jules feel about you calling someone else handsome, huh?" Nate looked at him in surprise. Then pulled a face.   
"Jules? I was just using her to make you jealous. She was in on it, I've been complaining to her about my stupid, sexy ex since we met."    
"Woah, woah, hold up. You've been complaining about me? You think I'm sexy? You aren't dating Jules? Nate, man, my heart, I have too much to process."

Then the unthinkable happened. Nate stood, placed his hands delicately around Jake's face, and kissed him. It was cold and sweet from the ice cream, it warmed up fast and sent an electric rush through Jake's toes to his head. He wrapped his arm around Nate's back, pulling him gently closer. They pulled apart for a moment, took a unified breath, then crashed back into each other. It was familiar, yet exciting, just like piloting a Jaeger. Eventually they pulled away, breathless and smiling. Jake pushed one last tender kiss to Nate's lips. They were going to rebuild the world, together.  


End file.
